Finance news you need to know today

SAYING “opposites attract,” Theresa May is calling on Donald Trump to build a stronger “special relationship” between Britain and the US.

HERE are eight things making news in business and finance today.

1. SYDNEY — The Australian dollar has fallen against its US counterpart which is up amid optimism President Trump will spend on infrastructure. The local currency was trading at 75.47 US cents at 0700 AEDT on Friday, from 75.74 on Thursday.

2. SYDNEY — The Australian dollar is lower against the US dollar which has rebounded from a seven-week low on traders’ optimism spurred by US president Donald Trump’s infrastructure spending plans. At 0635 AEDT on Friday, the Australian dollar was worth 75.48 US cents, down from 75.74 on Thursday.

3. PHILADELPHIA — US President Donald Trump wants to strike numerous bilateral trade deals, as opposed to multilateral accords like the Trans-Pacific Partnership, and they will include clauses to allow a 30-day termination notice.

4. PHILADELPHIA — President Donald Trump says his now-scrapped meeting with Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto would have been “fruitless” if Mexico will not agree to treat America “with respect.”

5. PHILADELPHIA — Saying “opposites attract,” British Prime Minister Theresa May is calling on President Donald Trump to build a stronger “special relationship” between Britain and the United States to withstand new, modern-day threats.

6. LONDON — As British MPs cried out “Disgraceful!”, the Conservative government introduced the long-awaited bill to start the country’s exit from the European Union and gave the House of Commons less than two weeks to consider it.

7. LONDON — Britain’s economy grew by a rate of 0.6 per cent in the last three months of 2016, as the country continued to demonstrate resilience in the months after the vote to leave the European Union.

8. BEIJING — Profits for China’s industrial companies in 2016 increased at the greatest rate in three years, with a strong growth of 8.5 per cent from the previous year, according to official data.